Printing machine



'May 19, 1942. M. B. WILLIS PRINTING MACHINE Filed May 20, 19,41' 3 Sheets-Sheet} INVENTOR;

u HamceflWillis,

' ATTORNEYS.

' WITNESSES.- v

May 19, 1942".

M. B. WILLIS PRINTING MACHINE 3 Sheets-SheeI- 2 Filed May 20, 1941 N QE ATTORNEYS;

May 19, 1942.

M. B. WILLI I PRINTING MACHINE a Sheets- Sheet 5 Fi led ma 20, 1941 FIG; 6'. S

AB DE ABCDEF H PERIOFD H PERIOD PERIOD m FIG 5 90 x 105 101 42 J 102 52 102 44' 3 7547 1 59L 35 32 36 1 22 2 25 x .LL'I: E I x y, ,5 9 10 44a 52 r nnnuunnnuuuuuuuuuuuunuu 76 62 Y 5- l N VEN TOR: 55 HaarZceflWZZlis,

A TTORN E YS movement in a direction perpendicular to the Patented May 19, 1942 I UNITED STATES PATENT j OFFlCE PRINTING MACHINE Application my 20, 1941', Serial No. 394,214

14 Claims. (Cl. 101-194 This invention relates to printing machines; and has for its chief aim to enable 'making of graphs, charts and the like through application to printed form sheets of impressions such as symbols, solid or broken bars, and/or lines either in single or contrasting colors to indicate by differences in theirlength, size or location, correspondingly different values or percentages by aid of which the extents or volumes of various things may be readily and quickly ascertained and compared without. the necessity for computation.

The foregoing desideratum I 'realize in practice, as hereinafter more fully disclosed, through provision of a printing machine of simple and compact construction in which a plurality of lat erally-spaced printing bars are, secured in a holder with capacity for endwise adjustment in the direction of their lengths to project forwardly to diiferent extents from said holder; in which the holder is sustained for movement in the direction of the bars by a-carrier so that the projecting ends of said bars may be brought into a position over a form sheet supported on a platen; in which the carrier is mounted for platen so that the printing bars may be brought into contact with the sheet; in which there is a supply means for a breaker strip adapted to transversely overlie a corresponding area of the platen to prevent contact of the printing bars with such area as the impressions are being made; and in which there is an auxiliary pressure means by which the projecting ends of the printing bars may be pressed into firmer contact with the form sheet on the platen after the actuation of the carrier as aforesaid. In the machine there is also a means for applying contrastingly colored inks to different groups of the printing bars during movement of the holder as the latter is moved toward and away from-the platen; and means whereby the sheet may be shifted on the platen laterally of the printing bars to predetermine the application of contrastingly colored imprints to different portions of said sheet.

other objects and attendant advantages .will appear from the following detailed description of the attached drawings, wherein:

Fig. 1 shows the top plan view of the printing machine embodying my invention, with a portion broken out to better illustrate important underlying details.

Fig. 2 is an elevation of the machine as itapwise with a portion broken out to expose important structural details.

' taken as indicated Fig. 3 is a longitudinal section of the machin by the angled arrows III-III in Fig. 1.

Fig. 4 is a fragmentary view in transverse section drawn to a larger scale and taken as indicated by the angled arrows IV-IV in Figs. 1 and 2.

Fig. 5 is a detail view in front elevation of the holder for the printing bars; and

Fig. 6 shows a chart such as may be produced in my improved printing machine;

. As herein illustrated, my improved printing machine has a substantially rectangular hollow base I with a raised platform 2 at the rear whereof the top 3 is designed to serve as the platen or pressure plate for the sheet S, such for example as shown in Fig. 6, upon which imprints are to be made, and with a depressedportion 4 at the front thereof. The base I is moreover formed with vertical axis bosses 5 and 6 respectively at the front and rear corners, and with similar vertical axis bosses I at the sides somewhat to the rear-of the frontal bosses 5, all said bosses being extended downwardly beyond the loweredges of the side walls of said frame for service as supporting feet. A pad 8 of rubber .or the like overlying the platen 3 (Fig. 4) is held in place by a textile cover sheet 8 whereof opposite edge margins are lapped downwardly over the sides of the platform 2 and clamped fast by bail-like members It and II of wire respectively pivoted atl2 and I3 (Figs. 1-3) to the front.

5 and rear walls of said platform. Supported upon upright lug projections It at the rear of the platform 2 and secured by bolts 15 is a gauge bar It which slightly overhangs the platen 3 (Figs. 2 and 3) and which has a pendant longitudinal gauging rib H for abutment of the rear edge of the sheet S. To the right hand side wall of the platform 2 (Figs. 1 and 2) are secured a pair of spaced bearing brackets I8 for a shaft I9 carrying resilient feeding rollers 20, 2| for .the sheet S. The feeding rollers 20, 2| project upwardly through suitable openings in a plate 22 supported by and fixedly secured to the .brackets [8 at the top, and are operated by turning a finger knob 23 at the rear end of the shaft 19. The roller 28 is opposed by a short fixed supplemental plate 25 (Fig. 4) which is spaced slightly upward from the plate 22 at the corresponding end of the latter, while the roller 2! is opposed by the contiguous overhanging end of the gauge bar It, see

pears when viewed from the right of Fig. 1 like- Fig. 2.

- paper or the like, the spool being so located that said strip will be positioned crosswise of the platen 3 and overlie a margin of corresponding width along the lower edge of sheet 5. A brake spring shown at 29 (Fig. 1) bearing against one side of the spool 23 yieldingly resists withdrawal of the strip B, which latter, as shown in Fig. 4,

under-passes a guide pin 33 on the bracket arm 21 and which, after traversing the sheet S, passes beneath through a combined guide clamp jointly formed by the supplemental plate 25 and a member 3| overlying it, see Figs. 1, 2 and 4. The

' clamp member 3| has upstanding ears 32 (Fig. 4)

which pivot on a transverse fulcrum pin 33 se- J cured at its opposite ends in upright bearing projections 35 on the plate 22. A coiled spring 36 surrounds the pin 33 intermediate the ears 32, one end 31 of said spring being anchored on one of the bearing projections 35 whilethe other end 38 bears downward on the clamp member 3|. As sho'wn,"the outer edge of the clamp member is beveled as at 3|a for the purposes of a knife against which the breaker strip-B may be torn. For convenience in initially threading the strip B in the machine, the clamp member 3| mayibelifted by pressure upon an upwardly extending flnger tab projection 39 thereon, such lifting',f'rnovement being limited by engagement of said projection with a corresponding fixed ilnger tab projection 43 on the plate 25, see Figs. 1, 2, and 4. s

Secured in the vertical axis bosses 5 and 1 of thebase are'studs 4|, 42, respectively, which are slidingly engaged by vertically spaced bosses 43, 43a and 44, 44a at the comers of a relatively narrow open rectangular cradle frame 45, which overlies the .depressed portion 4 of the base I, and which, by reason of its function presently explained, I'will term a *carrier; and surroundcarrier being normally held at the level illustrated in Figs. 2-4 by the springs 53, 5| with the lower edges of said printing bars above the plane of the sheet S on the platen 3. As shown, the notches 54 are closed by cap bars 56 and 51 secured by screws to the tops of the cross rails 52, 53 on the carrier 45.

' Positioned crosswise of the carrier with the ends of its shaft 63 freely journalled in vertical slots 6| in the opposite side rails of said carrier, is an inking roll 62 which contacts with the bottom edges of the printing bars 55, and which is divided into sections for inks of contrasting colors. For example those sections of the roll 62 designated 62a may be for green ink, the sections 62b for blue ink, and the remaining narrower sections 620 for brown ink. Disposed forwardly alongside the inking roll 62 is an applicator roll 63 which is correspondingly divided into sections for the contrastingly colored inks. The shaft 65 of the applicator roll 63 has its ends engaged in journal slots 66 in the side members of the frame 45,, said slots being inclined downwardly to urge the roll into contact with the inking roll 62 as clearly shown in Figs. 2 and 3. In order that the applicator roll 63 may be retracted from the inking roll 62 when desired or required, I have provided a lifting means consisting of a transverse rock shaft 66 which is journalled in the side rails of the frame 46; fingers 61 on said shaft for underreaching the roll shaft 65 at its ends; a manipulating handle projection 63 at one end of the rock shaft; and a fixed keeper 69 with a notch 63a to cooperate with the handle projection 63 in holding the applicator roll in its retracted position, said keeper being secured to one end of the cap bar 56. From Figs. 1 and 2 it will be observed that the shaft 65 of the applicator roll 63 is fitted at one end with a hand crank 13, and immediately inward of said crank with a collar 1| having a circumferential cam groove 12 in engagement with a lateral angular stud projection 13 at the corresponding side of the frame 45. As a consequence of this construction, the applicator roll 63 is reciprocated endwise as it is rotated, with a result that the differently colored inks are uniformly applied to and .distributed on the several sections of the roll 62. The inks may be fed to the applicator roll 63 in any convenient way, for example, from a sectional trough (not shown) placed therebeneath on the depressed portion 4 of the base I. Mounted in spaced bearing brackets 15 (Figs. 1-3)' at the front of the frame 45 is a transverse roller 16 which constitutes a moving support for the front ends of the printing bars 55.

At their front ends, the printing bars 55 are secured in-a holder having the form of a cross head 11, which (see Fig. 5) is notched as at 13 like the cross bars 52, 53 of the carrier 45 to receive said bars, and which is provided with a cap bar 19 with a resilient frictional facing 19a at the bottom thereof, said bar' being apertured to clear studs 33 upstanding from the holder, and said studs being threaded for engagement by thumb clamp nuts 8|. The holder 11 is secured at its opposite ends by means of jam nuts 32 to longitudinally extending supporting rods 33 which have sliding bearing in the cross bars 52, 53 of the carrier 45 adjacent the bottom of the latter and which pass through clearance openings 34 in the front and rear walls of the raised portion 2 of the machine base Each of the rods 33 is fitted at its outer end with a grasp knob 35 to facilitate moving the holder 11 relative to the carrier 45, the inner limit of such movement being determined by engagement of a stop ridge 36 thereon with the front ends of the journal brackets 15 for the roller I6, see Figs. 2 and 3.

By reference to Figs. 1-3, it will be seen that the comer studs 42 and similar studs 31 upstandof the eccentric element engages a rounded leaf spring 93 which is secured along one of its longitudinal edges to said cross bar 33.

Journalled in suitably spaced bearings I33 at the top of the cap bar 51 on the frame 45 is a rock shaft |3| which carries a plurality of rearwardly extending fingers I02 whichare reliedupon to hold the sheet S down on the platen 3. The shaft IOI is subject to the torsional action of a helical spring I03 (Figs. 1 and 4) by which the fingers I02 are yieldingly urged toward the platen 8. When desired or required the fingers I02 may be lifted through turning the shaft IOI against the action of the spring I03 by means of a manipulating handle I04 at one end thereof (Fig. 4). When desired, the fingers I02 maybe locked in raised position by turning the shaft IOI anticlockwise in Fig. 3 and engaging the handle 50 in the notch I05a of a keeper I05 on the cap bar 51 of the carrier frame 45.

As a means for actuating the frame 45 to bring the inner ends of the type bars 55 down into contact with the sheet S, I have provided a lever I06 in the form of a yoke with side arms I01 connected at their outer ends by a cross bar I08 which is adapted to be depressed by the fingers. The inner ends of the arms I01 are pivoted at I09 to upstanding lugs H on the low portion of the base I, while at an intermediate point, said side arms have pivotal connections as at III with the sides of the frame as.

The use and operation of the machine is as follows:

The printed form sheet S is first placed upon the platen 3 with its longitudinal rear edge abutting the depending ridge It of the gauge bar I6 as shown in Fig. 2, and advanced to the desired extent on the platen by manipulation of the finger knob 23 by which the feed rollers M are operated. The holder TI is thereupon shifted forwardly, i. e., upwardly in Fig. 1 from the retracted position indicated in dot-and-dash lines to the full line position in which latter position the printing bars 55 project over the platen 5. During this movement of the holder, the differently colored inks are applied to the bottom edges of the printing bars 55 of corresponding groups by the inking roller 62, whereof the shaft 50 is free to revolve in the'journal slots 6| of the carrier frame d5. The yoke lever I06 is next operated by pressing downwardly upon its cross bar I08 with the one hand to lower the carrier. 45,

as a result of which the forwardly projecting v ends of the printing bars 55 are brought into engagement with the sheet S. Then, in order to insure firmer contact of the printing bars 55 with the sheet S, the auxiliary pressure means, that is to say the eccentric member 95, is swun counter-clockwise in Figs. 2 and 3 by means of its handle 51 until the interposed spring element 98 bears firmly down upon said printing bars. In this connection it is to be noted that the spring element 90 operates as a means to prevent shifting of the printing bars under the rolling action of the eccentric pressure member 55 as the latter is rotated. The carriage for the auxiliary pressure member 95 may, of course, be shifted along the bars 90 to any desired position in accordance with the extent to which the printing bars 55 project beyond the carrier 35. With the inking roll 62 subdivided for color asshown in Fig. 1, thick vertical green lines will be printed in the subdivisions S and S? of the form sheet, thick vertical blue lines in the subdivisions S and S and thick vertical (total) lines in all four of said sections during the first impression, the breaker strip B operating incidentally to shield the lower margin of the sheet below the horizontal line L-L' in Fig. 6. The auxiliary pressure member 95 is thereupon swung back to its normal position, the carrier 45 allowed to rise under the influence of the springs 50, 5I so that the outer ends of the printing bars 55 clear the a sheet S on the platen 3, and the holder I9 moved to retracted position. Selected printing bars 55 5 are thereupon properly adjusted in the holder ll and the sheet S shifted on the platen so that upon the next printing operation carried'out in the same manner as above, explained, vertical blue lines are impressed for example in the sec- 10 tions S and .S of the sheet S (Fig. 6). Before this is done, however, the clamp 3| is lifted and' a clean length of the breaker strip drawn off, whereupon the clamp is againreleased to its normal position and the pulled length of said strip torn ofi against the knife edge of the clamp member. After the second impression, the holder is again retracted, selected printing bars 55 shifted as required and the sheet S moved laterally of the platen as may be necessary for application during the third impression, of vertical; blue lines to the sections S and S of the form sheet S. Occasionally it is incumbent upon the operator to rotate the applicator roll by means of its handle I0 for maintenance and distribution 5 of an adequate supply of the contrasting-inks upon the different sections of the inking roller 62.

I am not to be considered as restricted 'to the number of sections into which the inking roller 62 is subdivided in the example herein set forth for convenience of illustration, nor to the number of differently colored inks employed, since these considerations are variable within the scope of the appended claims. It is moreover to be understood that the printing bars 55 may be notched at their bottom edges to produce broken lines instead of solid lines; or, as another alternative, said bars may be provided at their bottom edges with, type characters-all in accordance to the particular work for which the 40 machine is intended to be used.

Having thus described my invention, I claim:

1. A printing machine comprising a platen for supporting a sheet which is to be printed; a plurality of printing bars; a holder in which the 4:; bars are arranged side by side and secured with capacity for being individually adjusted in the direction of their lengths to project to different extents beyond the holder and over the platen; a supporting carrier in which the barsare slidable endwise as a group; and means for moving the platen and the carrier relatively to 'efiect contact between theprintin'g bars and the sheet.

2. A printing machine according to claim 1, wherein the platen is flat and the printing bars are straight.

3. A printing machine according to claim 1. wherein the platen is flat and the bars are straight; and further comprising means for supporting a breaker strip of paper or the like crosswise over a portion of the platen below the printing bars and inward of the projected ends of the latter.

4. A printing machine comprising a platen for supporting a sheet which is to be printed; a plu- 05 rality of printing bars; a holder in which the bars are arranged side by side and secured with capacity for being individually adjusted in the direction of their lengths to project to different extents beyond the holder; and a carrier by m whichthe holder is sustained for movement of the printing bars endwise from a retracted position to an advanced position over the sheet on the platen, said carrier being movable perpen-'- dicularly of the platen for the purpose of bringing the bars into printing contact with the sheet after the holder has been moved to advanced position as aforesaid.

5. ,A printing machine according to claim 4, further comprising means on the carrier for inking the type bars incident to movement of the holder toward and away from the platen.

6. In a printing machine, a base having a depressed portion at the front, anda raised portion at the rear with a fiat horizontal surface serviceable as a platen for a sheet which is to be printed, and ahorizontal carrier positioned over the depressed frontal portion of the base; a plurality of laterally spaced printing bars confined to endwise movement toward and away from the platen in the carrier; a holder in the form of a cross head positioned forwardly of the carrier in which the bars are secured attheir .outer ends with capacity for being individually adjusted in the direction of their lengths so that'their inner ends may be projected to different extents beyond the holder; meanswhereby th holder is confined in the carrier with capacity for movement relative to the platen to bring the inner ends of the printing bars over the sheet on the platen; and means by which the carrier is sustained at a height such that the printing bars will normally be above the level of the platen during shifting of the holder, and which will yield to permit subsequent depression of the carrier to bring said bars into contact with the sheet on the platen.

7. A printing machine according to claim 6, wherein the carrier has sliding engagement for up and down movement with a plurality of studs upstanding from the depressed portion of the base; and wherein helical springs surrounding the studs constitute the means for yieldingly sustaining the carrier.

'8. A printing machine according to claim 6, further comprising an inking roller journalled at opposite ends on the carrier with its surface bearing against the bottom edges of the printing bars so as to apply ink to said bars as the holder is moved toward and away from the platen.

9. A printing machine according to claim 6, further comprising means: for shifting the sheet on the platen in a direction laterally of the printing bars; an inking roller journalled at opposite ends on the carrier with its surface bearing against the bottom edges of the printing bar so as to apply ink to said bars as the holder is moved toward and away from the platen, said roller being divided into sections for differently colored inks, the surfaces of which sections bear upon definite groups of the printing bars.

10. A printing machine according to claim 6, further comprising mean for supporting a breaker strip of paper or the like crosswise of the platen below the printing bars and inward of the projected ends of the latter.

11. Aprinting machine according to claim 6, further comprising leverage means for actuating the carrier; auxiliary pressure means su orted above the level of the printing bars; and means whereby the pressure means may beoperated after the bars have been advanced over the platen and the carrier depressed to urge the printing bars into more positive contact with the sheet.

12. A printing machine according to claim 6, further comprising leverage means for actuating the carrier; auxiliary pressure means; means for supporting said auxiliary pressure means above the level of the printing bars with capacity for being shifted in the direction of the printing bars; and means whereby the pressure means may be operated after the bars have been advanced'over the platentand the carrier depressed to urge the bars into firmer contact with the sheet. 1

13. A printing machine comprising a platen for supporting a sheet which is to be printed; a plurality of printing bars; a holder in which the bars are arranged side by side and secured with capacity for being individually adjusted in the direction of their lengths to project to different extents beyond the holder'and over the platen; a yieldingly mounted carrier in which the bars are slidable endwise as a group; pressure means supported over the platen above the level of the printing bars; and means for operating the pressure means to press the bars into contact with the sheet.

14. A printing machine according to claim 13,

, wherein the pressure means includes a rotatable eccentrically-mounted member which extends transversely of the printing bars, and a yielding spring plate positioned between the eccentricallymounted member and the printing bars.

MAURICE B. WILLIS. 

